Utility Nav Menu

Gartner ITxpo: Liveblog Oct 6

It's day 2 at the Gartner Symposium ITxpo 2014, the world's most important gathering of CIOs and Senior IT executives. We are here giving you insider access! We're liveblogging pictures, interviews, and session recaps to keep you in-the-know on #GartnerSYM, so make sure to keep checking in! If you haven't already, check out our day 1 GartnerITxpo liveblog!

6:30pm ITxpo Show Floor

The Gartner Symposium ITxpo Show Floor has officially opened! Make sure you stop by booth 1319 to learn about Apperian. With over 1.2 million app downloads we are the #1 app management and enterprise app store!

5:30pm Overheard at #GartnerSYM

Yoda is definitely a #MobilityPro. Are you? Tweet why you're a #MobilityPro with the hashtag and you'll be entered to win an Apple Watch! Click here to learn more about the #MobilityPro sweepstakes.

4:30pm Post-Session Selfies

Here's another selfie for you! This time I'm with Gordon Van Huizen, CTO of DSI after his session on mobilizing the supply chain. Gordon explained in his presentation that mobility provides a bidirectional communication between every point in the supply chain. Mobile allows us to reimagine a workflow like never before, something we all need to take advantage of.

3:30pm Advice for CIOs

Here's some great advice from Gartner analyst, Ken Dulaney in his session on "Mobile Maturity in a Digital Business World: How to Assess Your Current State and Plan Investment".

2:30pm Overheard at #GartnerSYM

1:30pm #MobilityPro Interview

Ed Salvatierra from ACT Inc. shares in this #MobilityPro Interview that mobility has really changed the way he works because now he is always working. Ten years ago when he attended this the ITxpo, Ed wasn't available to communicate and email while at a conference but today he is always available to his colleagues regardless of his location. Apps like vtalk that enable this constant communication are Ed's favorite kind of enterprise apps.

12:30pm Insights from "The Mobile Scenario"

David Willis presented on "The Mobile Scenario" explaining that mobile is at the forefront of digital business innovation and mobility is one of the top 3 priorities of the CIO. David shared that "The smartphone is your universal link to the Internet of Things" and battery life is the only thing that is not advancing fast enough. Devices need to be energy aware and mobile apps need to be mindful of battery life.

However, there is a skills gap around apps that needs to be addressed because many are built by contractors to the enterprise. IT needs to retool and improve mobile app skills as this will be essential moving forward. User experience within the app is the key to productivity and satisfaction while also reducing risk. Improved user experience through better UX design skills, ux partner and monitoring ux trends will lead to better efficiency and effectiveness of the user as well as increased apps usage and retention rates.

Here are a few tips for CIOs from David: sponsor ideation exercises because the future of mobile is stranger than your current strategy imagines; treat mobile development decisions as tactical and subject to change in an 18-24 month time frame; STOP managing devices, manage data and apps.

11:30am #MobilityPro Interview

Marisa Greenlee of DeKalb County Schools in Georgia shares with us in this #MobilityPro Interview, how no matter where she is, she can work . Her district just deployed a new app that enables education administrators to stay up to date with what is going on in their district directly from their mobile devices and ties the news back to their strategic initiatives.

11:00am Opening Keynote Recap

Many insights came from this morning's Opening Keynote which was started by Gartner CEO, Eugene Hall and proceeded with Gartner analysts Peter Sondergaard, Daryl Plummer and Richard Hunter. We learned that 650 million new objects are now online and that virtually every company is now a technology company.

This change is also effecting human behavior. As soon as we wake up, out comes a screen of some sort, kicking of our day that is now fueled by the digital world. Nothing gets more attention than the screen does, not the boss, not even the spouse and IT leaders need to keep up with these changes that have led us to the Digital Industry Economy, or they will become obsolete. In order to avoid this, Daryl Plummer shared that IT must be both rock solid and fluid because it is in the fluidity mode that people make a difference. Risk is a conscious leadership decision and leaders need to be smart about risk because ignoring it can be tragic.

Day 2 begins!

Good morning all! Today is going to be an exciting day so I hope you were able to get a good night's rest. The agenda for the next few days is jam packed and the best way to keep of all the sessions you want to attend is with the Gartner Events Navigator app. The app allows you to browse and manage your event agenda on the go while online or off, straight from your mobile device. Fully equipped with up-to-the-mintue event updates and social media integration to easily share what your doing with your peers and colleagues. Gartner is definitely a bunch of #MobilityPro(s)!
Did you miss out on day 1 of the ITxpo? Check out our live blog recaps for Gartner ITxpo October 5.